


Changes in the atmosphere

by Pplwkp



Category: Star Trek: Discovery
Genre: Angst, Comfort, Don’t copy to another site, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-04-23
Packaged: 2020-01-24 15:55:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18574738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pplwkp/pseuds/Pplwkp
Summary: Set immediately after the events of season 2 finale. They are in the future, but their status wrt their relationship is still unclear. Hugh learns to ask for what he wants. He also makes a new friend. Complete work.





	1. Chapter 1

Paul woke, feeling rested but somewhat numb. He blinked a couple of times, and then winced at the sudden brightness, and closed his eyes again. He remembered getting hurt, but he wasn’t sure how. Eyes closed, he started going through his extremities like Hugh had taught him.

 

_Start with your toes, Paul. If you can move them, your legs aren’t paralysed._

 

To his delight, his toes seemed to move as commanded. Then again, how would he know if he didn’t look? He forced his eyes open, and tried to take in the view despite the blinding lights. He was in sick bay. _Figures_ , he smiled acerbically. Usually, if he ended up in sick bay, there was at least the positive of seeing Hugh and having him yell at him for not being careful with his life. Now, he didn’t see Hugh anywhere. But he did see a lot of people who were injured or in a coma. There were no doctors that he could see, but then again, he was only looking ahead in case he had paralysis. He was about to panic, but then he remembered. _Right, the battle_ , he remembered _. Apparently the Discovery is still intact?_ _Or they removed the sick bay and attached it to another ship_. _Wait, the future. Did_ _I_ _miss it?_

 

_Relax, Paul. Focus on yourself for a moment. Make sure those toes move._

 

Paul forced himself to stop for a second and breath. He looked ahead, and saw that his toes were uncovered, and moving as he tried to wiggle them. _So. Not paralysis then_.

 

He didn’t feel pain. He felt empty. It was probably the drugs he was on from being treated. Treated by... _Hugh_. It all started coming back to him. _He told me to sleep. He came back_. For him. For Paul. It had felt real, but Paul was starting to doubt himself. He needed to make sure, so he grabbed the side of his bed and tried to slip off it, but as his legs touched the ground, his knees buckled. He dropped to an awkward position against the bed. At least he hadn’t fallen on the floor.

 

A doctor appeared by his side, and helped him back up on the bed. He recognized her as Hugh’s colleague, Tracy Pollard. “Commander Stamets, 5 days in a coma doesn’t prepare you well for a walk in the park. If you’d just let us help you, it would go easier on all of us.” She turned around and signalled something to one of the nurses, who nodded and spoke something Paul couldn’t hear into a comm.

 

Paul slumped back onto the bed. “What happened?”

 

Tracy Pollard turned back to him. “You broke three ribs and nearly lost a lung, sweetheart.”

 

Paul nodded. That explained the heavy medication.

 

“And where...when are we?”

 

“We went into the future. Apparently. So far it hasn’t been all it’s cracked up to be, but I figure we’ll know more once we find life.”

 

“Life? But --” Paul started, but the doctor cut him off. “Sorry, I have other patients to look after. Stay on the bed, because you’ll hurt yourself if you don’t. There is someone else who can answer your questions, and-- ah, he just walked in.” The doctor nodded to someone and smiled at Paul as she left.

 

Paul closed his eyes. He hoped it would be Hugh. But he didn’t want to get his hopes up. It was probably Saru. Or Tilly, or Rhys, or…

 

“Hi”, Hugh said softly.

 

*

 

In the days following the battle and their escape to the future, Hugh had had his hands full with injured crew members. After he had saved Paul’s life, there had been many others who had needed his help. He had collapsed at some point, and found himself in his new quarters with a note from Tracy Pollard saying ‘don’t come back before you’ve had at least 5 hours of sleep’. So he’d slept exactly 5 hours, before heading back to tend to the wounded. He relieved Tracy from her position so she could get some sleep herself, as she looked like she needed it. Then he got to work.

 

That’s how those first two days in the future rolled by. Hugh didn’t have any time to think about anything other than ‘how to stop the bleeding in this person’s artery’. But, after he and Tracy had managed to stabilize all the patients in their care, Saru had sent a cadet looking around the ship to make sure there were no unaccounted patients to care for, but they only found two such cases, both with slight cases of concussion. After they had been cared for, Hugh and Tracy both left sick bay to finally sleep a good night’s rest. Hugh barely remembered to change out of his bloodied medical clothes and just let them drop to the floor. He was asleep before his face hit the pillow.

 

When Hugh woke, he realized he had slept for 26 hours. He jolted awake, grabbing his Padd, fearing it might be filled with messages from the nurses or Tracy, but there was nothing. He jumped towards his closet to grab a new set of clothing. He had just finished putting it on and was heading out the door, when he got a message from Saru. Captain Saru now, probably, though Hugh hadn’t had time to pay attention to shifts in rank.

 

“Doctor Culber, once you’re awake, I’d like to talk to you in the mess hall.”

 

Hugh frowned, worried he might be in trouble. He hadn’t exactly asked permission to jump into the future with the rest of the crew, and now that he _had_ come along, he had failed his duty by falling asleep. He hoped there had been no fatalities during his slumber. He hurried to the mess hall, greeting surprised crew members on the way. During the first few days, he had gotten in and out of sick bay so early or so late that he had barely seen anyone. Now it was mid day, and a lot of people seemed to be curious as to why Hugh was there. As far as they knew, he and Paul had broken up, and Hugh had been on his way to Enterprise when they had travelled to the future.

 

In the mess hall, he saw Saru, Michael, Tilly, Jett and basically everyone they knew having an animated conversation as they ate. As he approached the table, the conversation died down. Most of them seemed glad to see him, but Saru’s expression was inscrutable, as always.

 

“Captain, I apologize for not informing you of my decision to stay. Uh. Permission to stay on board?” Hugh asked Saru, who finally broke into a smile. “Permission granted. Though I’m not captain yet.”

 

“Acting captain, then. I’m also sorry for falling asleep. I hope I haven’t endangered any lives in my absence. I can head there right now”, Hugh continued. He was about to do just that, when Saru stopped him. “Have you had anything to eat after waking up, doctor Culber?”

 

“No.” He actually hadn’t eaten anything before falling asleep either. He had headed straight to bed from sick bay.

 

“Eat then. Acting captain’s orders”, Saru smiled at him, and Hugh nodded and went to grab some food. When he returned, he heard Tilly and Jett arguing about him and Paul quite loudly.

 

“This means they’re back together now, doesn’t it?” Tilly told Jett, who shook her head.

 

“Technically all this means is that he decided to listen to my advice. There’s no telling if the big oaf will take him back.” Jett was always her sardonic self. Hugh had come to appreciate her during their talk about their respective partners.

 

“Why wouldn’t he?” Tilly asked.

 

Hugh was right behind them now, and apparently the look on Michael’s face alerted Tilly to his presence, as she look back at him terrified, but Jett had no such awareness.

 

“People usually don’t appreciate their hearts being stomped on repeatedly. It might go either way”, she finished, before eating some more of the food she had on her plate. Hugh sighed and sat next to her, because it was the only free spot at the table. Jett didn’t seem surprised by his appearance, which meant she had meant for him to over hear them. Hugh chuckled to himself, shaking his head a bit at her shamelessness. Then he noticed Michael was looking at him. “So. Are you? Back together with Stamets.”

 

Hugh looked down at his food, and suddenly wished he could beam away. But her face was so earnest and concerned, that he felt compelled to answer something. “He’s still in a coma, so no.” Well, Hugh had talked right before inducing the coma, but it was doubtful Paul remembered much of what he’d said.

 

“Hey bamboo boy, it’s your turn again.” Jett motioned towards Linus.

 

“How is it always my turn?” Linus protested, but Jett told him to stuff it.

 

Michael explained to Hugh that they were playing the auto antonym game.

 

“Like ‘impregnable’?” Hugh asked, and received an appreciative smile from Jett. “There you go, Doc Poo! Linus, you can’t use his word.”

 

“’Dust’”, Linus replied victoriously.

 

“Well done”, Owosekun congratulated him. The others started playing the game as well, and Hugh started to eat, relieved that his relationship status was no longer the topic of conversation.

 

As he ate, he started thinking of Jett’s words. Maybe he had hurt Paul too badly for them to recover. Paul had smiled at his words back in sick bay, but he had also been near death and high from the coma inducing medication in his system. Maybe he would feel differently once awake and in his right mind. Maybe the window of opportunity to get Paul back had closed. Maybe Paul’s heart had closed to him. Maybe he had ruined everything. It had taken him so long to feel any semblance of normalcy with regard to his mind and body that his journey back to where his heart belonged might have taken too long.

 

He returned to reality when he felt a hand on his arm. “Don’t let them ‘psych you out’, doctor Culber”, Saru said softly to him, so softly that others didn’t seem to hear him. “Your personal relationships are yours to handle how you choose.”

 

Hugh nodded to him gratefully and pat Saru’s hand in acknowledgement, who then let go. He decided to change the subject for a while, to distract himself. “I was surprised to wake after 26 hours to find no messages from sick bay. I hope that doesn’t mean I’m fired?” He went for levity, but stumbled slightly. Saru didn’t seem to notice. “No, everything’s fine in sick bay. After you and Doctor Pollard worked so hard, I deemed it appropriate to let you get some proper rest. After all, you treated everyone injured, so it didn’t seem necessary to keep you there. We’ve rotated the nurses as well, and all the patients are stable.”

 

Hugh gave a breath of relief. At least no patients had died while he had been away. He started when somebody shoved a tray next to him. It was Tracy Pollard. “That sleep did me a world of good, am I right, Hugh?” Hugh nodded and made room for his friend to sit. “Good day doctor Pollard”, Saru told her, who greeted him in kind, as did Michael, Tilly and the others. She and Hugh started talking about nothing in particular. Her light chatter helped Hugh relax and forget for a moment his predicament.

 

Hugh was surprised that he left the mess hall almost an hour and a half later than he had first arrived there. Usually he ate rather quickly but it had been good to exchange pleasantries with the other crew members, and to be updated on their location. At least it would give him something to talk to Paul about when he would wake up. He decided to head to sick bay, not for duty, but to check on Paul’s condition. Even if Paul would eventually decide against taking him back, he couldn’t fault him for checking on his health.

 

He nodded to the nurses as he entered sick bay and headed straight for Paul’s bed. He looked peaceful. Not like when he was high on spores and couldn’t see even with his eyes open. Just...at peace. His hair was a mess, but his features were relaxed and calm. Hugh looked at his vital signs, and they all pointed to Paul being relatively fine. Ready to be brought back from his coma, even. His hand instinctively lifted to touch Paul’s arm reassuringly, but, his hand midway in the air, he changed his mind. It wouldn’t be ethical of him to touch Paul while he was unconscious, especially in case Paul had decided not to take him back. He rebuked himself. He had told himself he came here to check on Paul in the professional sense.

 

“What’s the situation, Hugh?”

 

Hugh jumped when he heard Tracy’s words as she entered sick bay. He had been so focused on Paul that he had forgotten everything else. “With Paul? I mean, lieutenant commander Stamets? He seems to be doing okay. I wonder if he’s ready to come out of his coma.” She circled next to him and checked Paul’s vitals. “You wonder? Aren’t you usually sure of these things?”

 

“Maybe you should make the decision. I’m...not sure where we stand at the moment, and decisions regarding his health should be made by someone...less emotionally invested.” Hugh sighed, and Tracy shot him a puzzled look. “All right then. But I do agree with you, he should be ready to come out.” She stopped the flow of the coma inducing drug into Paul’s vein, and turned to face Hugh. “Stop being such a worry wart. People will surprise you.” She pat his shoulder and left Hugh staring wistfully at Paul’s resting face. He was close enough to touch, but still so far away.


	2. Chapter 2

“Hi.”

 

Paul opened his eyes, and turned to look at Hugh, who had appeared next to him, holding a tray of food. “Hi”, he answered weakly. So Hugh was really here. Unless he was hallucinating again.

 

“I’m not a hallucination”, Hugh replied before he could ask. He pulled up a chair for himself as he laid the tray on the small table next to Paul’s bed. He sat down and looked at his vitals. “Seems that you came out of the coma okay. I was starting to worry, but I guess you just needed the rest.” He looked down at his food. “I was down at mess hall having lunch when I heard you’d woken up.” He looked up to face Paul, who wasn’t sure what kind of face to make. He decided to go with blank.

 

Hugh looked well. Worried, but well. He also looked nervous. More nervous than Paul had seen him be in a long while. He watched as Hugh linked his fingers together and let them fall on his lap, like he had when he had told him that he would be leaving for the Enterprise.

 

“You lied to me”, Paul smiled at him. “You didn’t leave.” He was starting to recall Hugh’s words to him before the coma. _You’re my home. / I’m your family_.

 

Hugh avoided answering his non-question by biting down on a small piece of tomato. Paul wanted to run a finger along Hugh’s lips and then kiss him. But he wasn’t brave enough. What if Hugh had only come back because, when faced with the battle and Paul’s possible death, being with Paul had felt familiar? Maybe he regretted those words now. Paul didn’t want to push, because Hugh was too good a person, and in a situation like this, he might decide to be with Paul out of duty, just for having freaked out and blurted out something when Paul had been injured. Paul didn’t want duty to be the reason Hugh was there.

 

“I was going to, but decided against it”, Hugh finally replied.

 

“Oh?” Paul replied, staring into Hugh’s big dark eyes. _I love your eyes_. It was rather pathetic, but he had missed lying on a bed and having Hugh talk to him, even if it was in sick bay.

 

“We can talk more about it, once you’re more yourself again and released from sick bay”, Hugh told him, and they both sighed from relief. “I bet you can’t wait to hear about the future”, Hugh continued.

 

Paul took a comfortable position and nodded in affirmation.

 

“Well, apparently due to the battle, we were knocked a little off course, so we’re not exactly sure where we are. Scans indicate that, in a month or so, we should be able to see the next sign of intelligent life.”

 

“I could probably get us there faster”, Paul pointed out, trying to get a rise out of Hugh.

 

It seemed to work, at first. Hugh opened his mouth, looked prepared to give him his trademark talking down about spore safety and not risking his life when he’s 3 minutes out of a coma, but then he sighed, looked away from him and put some more food in his mouth. “What was that? Aren’t you about to lecture me on staying healthy and all that?” Paul figured the best way for them to resume any kind of normalcy was for them both to their sardonic selves. He gave Hugh a baiting smile, but Hugh glanced at him and then looked away again.

 

“I’m just...not sure if I have the right to any more”, Hugh said softly. He looked sad. Paul was trying to figure out why. Maybe he really had come to regret going with Paul. Now he was stuck in the future with his ex and could never see his family again. All because of his big, soft heart.

 

Paul tried to cheer him up. “Of course you do. Why should you stop now?” he said, and pushed Hugh’s arm with his hand. This prompted a smile, a genuine smile at last from Hugh.

 

“Well, if I DID have the right, I would remind a certain Starfleet officer to remember that he just emerged from a coma all of 10 minutes ago, so he might take some rest, you know, for maybe a month, before doing anything hazardous to his health for a while”, Hugh said, trying to sound firm but it was more like his regular playful rebuke Paul was used to.

 

They talked some more, mostly dancing around the subject of their relationship status, and instead focused on chuckling together about things around the ship, the gossip Hugh had picked up from the mess hall and then Hugh went to pick up some post-coma food for Paul, and told him to eat them slowly and not to wolf them up like he normally did. Paul smiled at him, and waved at him as he left sick bay. Their talk about their relationship could wait. Paul needed time to gather his thoughts. He needed to figure out how to let Hugh know that he would be okay if Hugh had only said those things because he had been worried about Paul. And he needed to find a way to say the words convincingly to Hugh. It would be difficult. _I_ won’t _be okay, but I’ll have to be._ _For him_.

 

*

 

After Paul woke, they saw each other rather frequently in sick bay as Hugh worked there, but he didn’t always have time to talk to Paul as he and Tracy were in the process of bringing back all the other patients they had put in a coma, and all of them needed to be observed in case something went wrong with the process. A couple of times, Hugh saw that Paul had a visitor, a rather young looking man Hugh had seen a few times in Paul’s lab. Paul seemed to converse with him rather animatedly and clearly enjoyed their talks. A lingering fear started growing at the back of Hugh’s mind. Was Paul seeing this person?

 

Listening around, he discovered that the man was called ensign Jensen. He recalled hearing Paul mention him once or twice before. He hadn’t thought anything of it, but now, with their situation so unclear...maybe Paul was lonely. Or maybe he was really interested in Jensen. He was handsome, and interested in the same field as Paul. Maybe they would make a good match.

 

That was basically what Hugh was thinking as he stopped by the mess hall to have dinner late one night. It was eating at him. He didn’t realize his frustration was showing in his face, before he saw Saru standing opposite him. “Doctor Culber, am I disturbing your thoughts?”

 

“Yes, but please do”, Hugh replied and motioned for the Kelpien to sit down. “I was thinking about… dumb things.”

 

“Very well then”, Saru sat and started to eat. “You are eating quite a late dinner”, he pointed out.

 

“Yes well, the patients need care, regardless of time of day. I should say the same thing to you”, Hugh replied pleasantly.

 

“Yes, well, being acting captain has its downsides. Trying to manage a crew with nothing to do at the moment can be challenging. People are bored and sometimes that’s worse than if they were frightened”, Saru talked as he began eating.

 

“Yes, I can imagine. Hopefully no fights will break out”, Hugh said, mentally preparing himself to receive drunken and disorderly patients to sick bay.

 

“I shall strive to do my best to avoid such an occasion, doctor”, Saru replied, giving him a wry smile. “May I ask, what were these... ‘dumb thoughts’ you were thinking about?”

 

Hugh swallowed. “It’s probably beneath an acting captain’s responsibilities.” He wanted to confide in somebody, but he felt it would be inappropriate to bother Saru with his personal dilemma.

 

“Doctor Culber, as you and I have both gone through a metamorphosis of sorts, my wish is that you and I become friends, and friends do help each other deal with...dumb thoughts.”

 

“Well, if we’re friends, you should probably call me Hugh”, Hugh offered with a smile. He hadn’t thought of it before, but his own return from the dead and Saru’s loss of his fear ganglia shared many similarities.

 

“Well then, Hugh, tell me what’s on your mind.” Saru smiled, pleased at their new found comraderie. “Are you still feeling like an outsider in your own life?”

 

Hugh nearly suffocated on a piece of food. Saru was a bit too observant. “Well, yes, but I think I found the answer for it. This is actually about Pa--lieutenant commander Stamets.”

 

“Oh”, Saru mused. “So you think he can help you be more like yourself?”

 

“Yes, but there’s just one problem. Well, actually there’s more, but I wanted to ask you...” Hugh trailed away, hoping Saru would guess what he was thinking.

 

“Yes?” Saru motioned for him to keep talking.

 

“Do you think Paul, I mean, have you heard...” Hugh tried to move his hands to help formulate his thoughts, but it didn’t help. “Is he...”

 

“Hugh. I realize this isn’t easy for you, but it would probably be better for this conversation if you just said what the problem was.”

 

“Do you think Paul is still single?” Hugh finally blurted out. Then, because he knew what it sounded like, he started talking really fast. “I mean, I’ve seen him talk to this ensign, and I’m just wondering if they’re seeing each other, or if I still have a chance. I want to tell Paul that I want to be with him, but if he’s already moved on, I can’t...” Hugh trailed off when he saw Saru’s shocked expression. “I’m sorry, was it too much?” Hugh cursed himself for sounding like a cadet talking to his boss about his romantic problems.

 

“No, it was, uh, just enough. But, Hugh, I believe these are questions only the person in question can answer”, Saru pointed out. “I believe you should have a serious talk with commander Stamets.” Saru got up as he had finished his meal, and leaned in to place one hand on Hugh’s shoulder. “Expediently.”

 

Hugh nodded. Saru was right. He needed to talk to Paul. As soon as he would be discharged from sick bay.

 


	3. Chapter 3

Paul was released from sick bay a few days after he woke up. His clothes had been so torn up that they had been thrown away, but he received a Discovery sweat shirt and pants so he could walk in them to his quarters and change. Hugh and Tracy Pollard were both there to see him go. He wasn’t sure what to say with Tracy there, so Paul just headed to the exit, but Hugh caught him on his way to the door. “Paul”, Hugh called after him, and Paul turned around, to see Hugh staring into his eyes. Hugh looked somewhat anxious and again had his fingers linked together and was fidgeting strangely, exactly the way he had during their post-coma talk, and just like when Hugh had told him that he was leaving for the Enterprise. It reminded him of an old memory, but he wasn’t sure what the memory was. He struggled to remember it, but failed.

 

“Paul, now that you’re on the mend, do you think it might be time for us to talk?”

 

“Yes. I also need to talk to you”, Paul smiled, prompting Hugh to smile back at him.

 

“Okay, I get off at 1900. Dinner?” Hugh asked, looking slightly happier than before.

 

“Sure. Maybe we should eat in your quarters. More privacy that way”, Paul pointed out, and Hugh nodded. “Your quarters work too”, Hugh offered, but Paul shook his head. “The last time we tried that, the dinner ended up on the wall”, he said, causing Hugh to look guilty, which was the opposite of what he wanted. He just wanted them to meet at a neutral place, and one with so many memories would probably be a bad fit. “I just meant, hey, I haven’t even seen your quarters. Where are they?” He said, successfully distracting Hugh from his previous remark.

 

“I will send you the directions. Or maybe we just meet at the mess hall, and take our trays there?” Hugh asked, and Paul nodded. “Absolutely. Let’s meet there.”

 

Hugh smiled and turned back to his patients and Paul exited sick bay. First, he headed to his and Hugh’s old quarters and took a shower. He then changed his clothes to his normal uniform and headed out the door, feeling more like himself.

 

Paul went to find Saru and showed him that he had been cleared for duty. He also told him that both Hugh and Tracy had recommended that he abstain from using the spore drive for a while. Saru accepted that and told him to resume his post. So he did. He returned to the lab where Tilly and Jensen had already gotten a lot of work done based on his instructions. Tilly had been too busy to come see Paul during his convalescence, so she had sent Jensen instead. Jensen had used his tricorder to record Paul’s instructions and then played them for Tilly, who then instructed Jensen on how to do his work.

 

Tilly greeted Paul fondly. “Good to have you back boss”, she said and slapped him on the shoulder awkwardly and smiled at him. She then started relating to him the part they were at in their work. Paul set a timer for himself to make sure he would be on time for his dinner date with Hugh.

 

He figured he’d have plenty of time to think of a way to tell Hugh whatever it was he wanted to say, but it was as if the timer went off only a moment later. He had only tried rehearsing his words a couple of times, and those hadn’t exactly been stellar efforts. He hurried back to his quarters, took a shower and decided to dress nicely for their maybe-date, maybe-breakup date, but realized that he only owned several copies of his blue uniform. He took a look at the sweat shirt and pants he had gotten from sick bay, but they weren’t festive enough either. So, he settled for the blue uniform. Couldn’t go wrong with it. Except if Hugh was wearing something else. Well, Hugh knew exactly the kind of clothes Paul owned.

 

He rushed out the door and arrived exactly five minutes early to their meeting spot in the mess hall. He had been notoriously late for their dates when they had been dating, so he wanted this time to be different. He wanted to treat Hugh right this time. Even if it was just to tell him to be free.

 

Hugh arrived a few minutes after their meeting time. To Paul’s delight, he was also wearing his white medical uniform, so both of them had played it safe when it came to clothing. He looked so handsome that it made Paul ache. “I’m so sorry I’m late, one patient experienced a bad set of complications and I didn’t want to leave Tracy alone with him.”

 

“No no, you’re right on time, I was just a little early”, Paul waved his hand and smiled to reassure him.

 

“Really?”

 

“You don’t have to sound that surprised”, Paul chuckled and motioned towards the trays. Hugh gave him a wry smile and picked up one of the trays. They each picked their chosen food items and then Paul followed Hugh to his new quarters. They were situated rather near sick bay, which had probably been the reason Hugh had chosen those quarters. Inside, he saw mostly Hugh’s medical clothes in the closet, and certain familiar items, but otherwise it was very bare. It was also quite small. Hugh had a bed, a table and one chair. As if Hugh knew what he was thinking, he said: “I know it’s small, but I don’t really spend time here other than sleep here, so it functions.”

 

“No, it’s fine”, Paul said and eyed the table. “If we move the table, you can sit on the bed and I can take the chair?”

 

Hugh nodded and they did just that. They then set the trays on the table and started to eat. They were both too nervous to start talking right away, so they silently decided to eat first and then talk.

 

After they had eaten every last bite, they set the trays on top of each other so they would be easy to return to the mess hall later. After that, they realized there was nothing left to do but actually talk. Paul decided it was for him to start. “Hugh...about what you said before you put me under.”

 

He saw Hugh straighten himself up and sort of brace himself for what he had to say. He also looked...scared?

 

“You remember what I said?” Hugh asked him softly.

 

“Of course”, Paul replied. “I understand.”

 

Hugh looked confused at his last phrase. “What do you understand?”

 

“Hugh, I know you care about me, and I don’t want you to feel like you are beholden to me because of something you said when you were emotionally compromised.”

 

Hugh looked even more confused now. “Paul--.”

 

“You’ve worked so hard to forge a new life for yourself. I don’t want you to back track now just because my life was in danger”, Paul said and took Hugh’s hand in his. “I love you, I always will, but you need to put yourself first now.”

 

Hugh looked hurt. “I meant what I said. I mean what I said”, he told him firmly.

 

Paul caressed Hugh’s hand with his thumb. “I know you did, because of who you are, Hugh”, he told him. “But you’re not in love with me anymore, and that’s okay.” Paul congratulated himself on his ability to say the words without breaking down. He had tried before, using a mirror, and he hadn’t managed then.

 

“But I _am_ in love with you”, Hugh replied, and stood up and took a few steps away from him. He buried his face in his hands and turned half way back to Paul, who was stunned by the words he had just spoken. “Is this because of ensign Jensen?”

 

Now it was Paul’s turn to be confused. “Is what because of Jensen?”

 

Hugh turned to look at him and let his hands drop to his sides. “Are you not single any more? Are you and him...together?”

 

Paul looked at him incredulously and stood up as well. “He’s half my age!” That didn’t seem to satisfy Hugh, who continued. “I’ve seen him visit you in sick bay, and you’re always talking to him about something.”

 

“I’ve had him record my instructions, which he then takes to Tilly”, Paul explained. “For our work.” This Hugh seemed to accept, and then gave out a breath of relief.

 

Paul realized something. “You are jealous. Not just jealous, ridiculously jealous.”

 

“Yes, obviously I am jealous.” Hugh did that weird thing with his fingers again, and Paul finally remembered what the memory regarding that was about. He had only seen Hugh do that a select few times. “You want to kiss me, but you don’t know if you should. You did that same fidgeting with your fingers on our first real date.”

 

Hugh smiled faintly. “I remember.” He looked about ready to cry.

 

Paul took a step further and was now close enough to Hugh to touch him, but he didn’t, not yet. He knew he had to do this the right way and make sure nothing was left unsaid.

 

“Hugh, tell me what you want.”

 

Hugh paused for a while. “I want you to tell me there’s nothing going on with you and Jensen or anyone else.”

 

Paul shook his head. “There isn’t.”

 

Hugh seemed surprised, but continued. “I want you to take me back as your partner.”

 

Paul broke into a smile. “I do.”

 

“And I want you to kiss me. If you want to”, Hugh finished, looking expectantly at Paul, who leaned in and pressed his lips against Hugh’s lips.

 

It was a rather chaste kiss, more a promise of more to come than anything close to sensual, but feeling Hugh sigh against him afterwards, for the first time since he had died, filled Paul with happiness.

 

After they broke the kiss, Hugh raised his hand to caress Paul’s cheek, and looked him in the eyes. “I love you, Paul”, he whispered, like it was a secret. Maybe it was. “I love you too, my dear doctor”, Paul said as he wrapped his arms around Hugh’s muscled torso. Just then he realized that Hugh was trembling. “You’re shaking, you big softie.”

 

“This was rather draining”, Hugh admitted. Paul laid his hand on Hugh’s neck. “You feel cool to the touch. Are you cold?”

 

Hugh nodded sheepishly.

 

“Okay, you change into your pyjamas and I’ll go grab us some hot chocolate from the mess hall. I’ll be back soon”, Paul told him. When he returned, he found Hugh already in the maroon pyjama, propping up the covers of the bed. Paul placed the mugs on the table. He then reached out to gently push Hugh to sit on the bed and to wrap Hugh in the covers, and then handed him one of the mugs. “This should get your temperature up”, he said and motioned for him to drink. Then he grabbed his own mug and started drinking as well.

 

“So you’re the one taking care of me now?” Hugh raised a quizzical eyebrow.

 

“Learned it from the best”, Paul smiled.

 

Hugh finished his mug. “It’s getting late. Do you... want to stay here tonight?”

 

“I do, but I think I should leave you to rest. You are positively spent. But I’ll come check on you tomorrow morning at work. What time does your shift start?”

 

“0700”, Hugh replied, collapsing on the bed with the covers.

 

“I’ll set an alarm for you”, Paul said and did it. Then he planted a quick kiss on Hugh’s forehead, and headed for the door like a scandalous lover, into the night. “Good night”.

“Good night, Paul”, Hugh mumbled and fell asleep. Paul smiled and made his way out of Hugh’s quarters.

 

_Well, that went much better than I expected_ , he thought as he walked back to his own quarters, resisting the urge to punch the air in celebration.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, Hugh woke to the alarm Paul had set for him. He felt like he had slept for a year and not even an hour, at the same time. He glanced at the table and noticed that Paul had taken the trays back last night. He had been too tired to notice. He felt happy, but in a way that felt fragile. Like it was too new to test. He hoped Paul hadn’t told anyone about last night. He himself had an urge to tell everyone who would listen, but at the same time he wanted to keep their reunion secret for now. He didn’t want everyone prodding them with questions they hadn’t resolved together yet.

 

He stepped into the shower and after he was done, he clothed himself. He was about to step out for breakfast, when he received a food delivery from the mess hall. He was about to tell the cadet delivering the food that he hadn’t ordered anything, but realized that Paul must have ordered the food for him. So, he accepted the tray and set it on his table. Then, he opened his Padd, and indeed he found a message from Paul, saying “I wasn’t sure what you like now so I got you a bit of everything.” Paul had went all in, and the tray had a tiny bit of nearly every breakfast item one could’ve thought of.

 

Hugh started to eat, and while at the beginning he was wondering what to do with all the food left over, he ended up finishing everything. Then he noticed that his shift was about to start, so he hurried out the door and made a mental note to return the tray later. Then he realized he could bring it to work with him, and returned to pick it up.

 

Work was rather routine, and a welcome distraction so he had nearly forgotten that Paul had promised to drop by. So, he was slightly surprised when Paul entered sick bay, waving at him.

 

“You know, it _is_ nice to be here for once without an injury”, Paul smiled widely at him. Hugh smiled back at him, and took a step closer to him.

 

“Thank you for last night. And breakfast this morning”, Hugh told him softly, so Tracy and the patients couldn’t hear.

 

“Thank you, and I’m glad you liked it”, Paul answered. “Are you feeling cold now? Are you getting sick?” He stepped closer still and placed a hand on the side of Hugh’s arm to comfort him.

 

“No, I was just spent last night. But thank you, for caring for me”, Hugh replied in an even softer tone, and placed his hand over Paul’s. Paul was very close now. Hugh looked him in the eyes, and then his lips, and he looked so striking that Hugh almost reached over and kissed him, but he was still at work, and he wasn’t sure what Paul was thinking. He let his hand drop his side and Paul followed suit.

 

“Any time”, Paul said, beaming at him. “Dinner? Tonight?”

 

“Sure”, Hugh replied. “Maybe this time at your quarters?”

 

“Are you sure?”

 

“Yes”, Hugh nodded. He wanted to see what kissing Paul in their old quarters would feel like. “I mean, there’s more room there.”

 

Paul didn’t seem entirely convinced by his argument, but let it go. “Indeed. Well, same time at the mess hall?” He also picked up the breakfast tray Hugh had brought with him. “I’ll return this for you.”

 

“Yes.” Hugh waved him off and resumed work, avoiding Tracy’s knowing smile.

 

If the morning had went by in a flash, the day itself crawled to its conclusion. Hugh was staring at the clock, willing for time to go faster, which was ironic considering they had just travelled to the future. Finally his shift ended and he walked faster than he had intended to the mess hall. Paul was early again, waiting for him to arrive. They both wanted to say something, but from a near telepathic agreement, they decided to wait until they were behind closed doors.

 

As they entered Paul’s quarters, they set their trays on the table and then Hugh impatiently pulled Paul closer to him. “I would like to kiss you”, Hugh whispered, and Paul leaned in, pleased. “Please do”, he said, and closed the last bit of distance between them.

 

This kiss was more eager than the last one they had shared. The night before Hugh had simply been happy that Paul wanted him back. Now he wanted to please him. He wrapped his arms around Paul’s form and caressed his back. Each touch brought back a memory from before. Somehow touching Paul helped cover the distance between memories and the feelings associated with them. When they pulled apart for air, Paul whispered against his skin: “There is no rush, my love. Also, there’s food to be eaten.”

 

Hugh reluctantly let go of Paul, and sat on one of the chairs around the table. He was slightly embarrassed about lunging on Paul like that, but Paul didn’t seem bothered. He simply pulled a chair next to his and started to eat, and motioned for him to do the same.

 

As they ate, they talked about their day and the work they had done. Hugh looked around the quarters, and wasn’t surprised that not much had changed. It did seem larger now. Almost intimidating.

 

Just then, Paul grabbed his hand. “Are you all right?”

 

“Just a little disoriented, I suppose”, Hugh sighed. “I want to be with you, you know that. And I want things to be good between us. Being here just feels like I have to do it all at once, you see?”

 

Paul nodded. “I get it.” He placed a reassuring hand on Hugh’s knee. “Do you prefer to finish our dinner in your quarters?”

 

“No, that’s not necessary. I just mean, I can’t move back in with you. Not right away”, Hugh said, hoping Paul wouldn’t take his words the wrong way. Paul seemed to ponder something for a moment, and then just said “that is fine with me. As long as we’re back together, it doesn’t matter what we do, so long as it works for the both of us.”

 

Hugh shot him a thankful smile.

 

“By the way, about us being back together”, Paul started and Hugh looked at him quizzically. “Do you think we should wait until we’re on a more...firm base before we let others know? I just feel we’re in a bit of a fragile place, and I want to protect that from questions and judgement.”

 

“I feel the same. Although I think Tracy knows, based on our actions this morning. But she doesn’t gossip.”

 

“Perfect. So we’ll just...be.” Paul’s smile and his soft affirmation of affection caused Hugh to place his left hand on Paul’s chest and kiss him. He traced Paul’s chest up to his collar, but when he tugged it, Paul broke the kiss. “Hugh, I’m sorry, but I’m not ready for that yet. We only got back together last night, my brain needs time to re-adjust.”

 

“I didn’t mean it like that. I mean, I...” Hugh trailed off as Paul waited patiently for him to gather his thoughts. “What do you want, Hugh?”

 

“I want make love to you. But I also don’t. I want us to move forward slowly. But I would also like to sit in your lap and have you talk about mushrooms while I kiss you. At the same time. It’s very confusing”, Hugh told him.

 

“I feel the same way”, Paul told him. “Do you want to stay here tonight? You know. Just to be with me.”

 

“Yes, but I didn’t bring my pyjama with me, so I have to swing by my quarters to get some”, Hugh replied.

 

“I might have kept one pair of your pyjama on me. And a toothbrush”, Paul admitted.

 

“Really?”

 

“They smelled like you”, Paul explained. “Well, not the toothbrush.”

 

“And you’re calling _me_ a big softie”, Hugh said sardonically.

 

Paul shook his head, and in a moment’s time they were both lying on the bed, Paul’s arm flung over Hugh’s shoulder, Hugh’s arm on Paul’s chest.

 

“Alarm?”, Hugh mumbled, and Paul reached out to type a few digits onto his Padd.

 

“On”, Paul agreed and closed his eyes.


	5. Chapter 5

For the next week or so, they met nearly every night, either for a dinner in their quarters, or just to sleep over. They started arriving to pick up their trays at slightly different times, so no one would start to wonder if they were a couple again. They focused on enjoying their quality time together. 

Then one day, Saru called all of them for a meeting, to brief them on Discovery’s progress, and the kind of tactical preparations that needed to be made in case they encountered hostile life forms. Paul sat with Tilly, Michael and Jett, while Hugh and Tracy found their seats a little further away. After the meeting was nearing it’s end, Saru opened the floor to questions and requests. Paul stood up and attracted the attention of everyone else, including Hugh. 

“Am I correct in assuming that since we’ve left the past, we have more empty quarters than we did at full staff, acting Captain Saru?”

“You are, commander Stamets.”

“Then I am requesting a change in quarters. As you all know, Doctor Culber and I no longer live together, and I find that my quarters are too big for one person to occupy”, Paul said.

Saru looked surprised, turning to look at Hugh, who was equally taken aback. Hugh forced himself to give a weak nod.

“You may choose your new quarters and just notify me once you’re ready to move”, Saru decided, and Paul nodded and sat back down. As nobody else had questions, Saru dismissed them. People were starting to make their way out of the hall. Hugh pretended not to notice the sympathetic looks people were shooting in his direction, especially Tilly, who then turned to Paul and said, louder than intended: “You shouldn’t be so mean to Doctor Culber.” Paul was about to answer, but by then Hugh had walked up behind him. “A word?” Hugh asked in a chilly tone. Paul nodded and let Tilly and the others leave. 

Once the others had left, Paul touched him on the shoulder. “That was brilliant acting, I really bought that you were angry with me for embarrassing you in public”, he congratulated his partner. 

“Well, it was one part acting and one part being surprised and needing to cover it. But what were you thinking, anyway?”

“This way nobody suspects that we’re together. Also I figured that this is the best move for us. As partners.”

“How do you figure?”

“If we both have our own new quarters, you don’t have to feel obligated to move back into our old quarters, because our old quarters won’t be there any more. Or will be, but used by somebody else.”

“Oh”, Hugh said. “You listened.”

“Yes, I did.”

“I kind of want to kiss you now.”

“Me too, but now you have to storm out in a huff and look really angry at me.” Paul winked at him and pushed him towards the exit. Hugh blew him a kiss and then put on his best grimace for when he entered the hallway and a bunch of crew members looked on with sympathy all the way to sick bay. In sick bay, Tracy was waiting for him and shook her head. “You two are the weirdest couple I know”, she sighed, and Hugh shot her an apologetic smile.

From then on, their relationship continued to evolve. They talked more than they had in their entire relationship, re-learning what the other liked and disliked, and finding out new things about each other. For instance, Hugh had lost the appreciation he had once had for Kassellian opera, as being brought back from the dead kind of stopped any appreciation he had for an opera that always included the suicide of its lead performer. Paul revealed that before they went to the future, he had been going to meetings for fellow widowers. 

They bickered, just like they always had, but they also communicated better than ever, and were more direct about their needs and wants, especially Hugh. And Paul was more attentive to him, more willing to prioritize him over his work than before. Of course, before they would meet signs of life, Hugh couldn’t know how long it would last, but so far it felt like Paul had simply shifted priorities, and chosen him.

Eventually they were starting to be comfortable enough with each other to broach the subject of sex. “Hugh, I need to talk to you about something”, Paul told him and grabbed his hand. It was one of the many nights they had spent in Paul’s new quarters. 

“Shoot”, Hugh replied, and placed a hand on Paul’s chest.

“I think I’m ready to take the next step”, Paul told him. He placed a hand on Hugh’s hand and used his other hand to rub Hugh’s back, sending waves of pleasure down Hugh’s spine.

“Me too. But Paul, there’s something you should know”, Hugh told him. Paul waited. 

“Do you remember when you brought me back and Tracy checked me out and she said my body was ‘pristine’?”

Paul didn’t answer, simply waited for Hugh to finish his explanation. 

“Well...that means...this body hasn’t...ever...”

“Oh”, Paul breathed.

“It’s not a huge problem, but I’m just saying, the first few times might not be great”, Hugh explained.

“Well, we should explore this in due time. For science, I mean”, Paul said sardonically, and Hugh shook his head. “I love you too, asshole.” Then he kissed Paul, to take away the edge from his words.

“Speaking of assholes...should we start from fingering?”

A few days later, they did just that. On the bed in Hugh’s quarters, they undressed each other and Paul dipped his hands in some lube. After warming his hands up, he ran his fingers down Hugh’s back, onto his buttocks and, after properly teasing the area for a while, down to where he wanted to go. Hugh swallowed and tried not to yell, so he focused on suckling a nook in Paul’s neck. He moaned and felt Paul’s fingers slip inside him. 

Paul worked fast, or Hugh’s new body was just reacting all too soon. He started convulsing, and as he did, Paul then positioned himself to look Hugh in the eyes as Hugh came, as if to make sure he knew who pleasured him. Hugh struggled to catch his breath and didn’t break eye contact with Paul, who seemed pleased by this. Hugh held onto Paul’s shoulders and cried out.

They laid like that for a while, just staring into each other’s eyes and breathing against each other. Hugh was unwilling to let go of Paul’s shoulders. “Stay with me”, he whispered and pulled Paul into a kiss.

“I’m not going anywhere, my ravenous lover”, Paul replied between kisses.


	6. Chapter 6

The next day, Paul had a strange feeling of being noticed more than usual, but he couldn’t figure out why it was. As he made his way to engineering, he greeted Michael, Tilly and Jett. They also looked at him strangely, Jett in particular. “What is it?” He finally asked, because it was clear there was something going on.

 

“Stamets, you have a wound on your neck”, Michael pointed out to him.

 

“No, mushroom boy, you have a hickey”, Jett corrected her, and looked at him knowingly. Tilly tried to stop herself from laughing, and failed miserably. Paul grimaced and summoned a mirror to see the spot for himself, and indeed, there was a bright red spot on his neck. Right where Hugh had bit down last night. He shut down the mirror and turned back to look at his colleagues, who were all looking at him expectantly.

 

“So, who was it?” Tilly asked.

 

“Who was who?” Paul replied.

 

“Who were you with? Are you and Doctor Culber back together?” Tilly asked excitedly, and Michael started looking happy as well.

 

“No, we are not together. This was...an accident”, Paul tried to sound vague, but his remark seemed to raise more questions than he intended.

 

“So who was this ‘accident’ then?” Michael asked with a teasing smile. Paul was surprised by her boldness, but then again, she was room mates with Tilly, so something was bound to rub off on her.

 

“None of your business. Look, if this is going to be so distracting to you, I shall go to sick bay to take care of it”, Paul said, heading for the door.

 

“How are you going to explain to doctor idiot that you messed around with someone else?” Jett called after him, but Paul didn’t dignify that with an answer.

 

*

 

Hugh saw Paul enter sick bay holding his hand on his neck, clearly covering something. “I have a wound on my neck!” Paul called out as his eyes met Hugh’s. Hugh assumed he was speaking so loudly for Tracy’s benefit, to indicate he wasn’t there to canoodle with Hugh.

 

“Commander Stamets, let me look at that wound”, Hugh said, also a touch more louder than usual, playing along. He motioned Paul towards one of the beds and then told Paul to show him the wound. He assumed Paul had cut himself with something by accident. He wasn’t expecting what he saw there. “Oh.”

 

“Yes.” Paul looked embarrassed.

 

“Paul, I’m so sorry, I didn’t remember how sensitive your skin is”, Hugh apologized. He knew his partner wasn’t one for flaunting their private life, and this must’ve been very awkward for him.

 

Paul smiled reassuringly. “I wouldn’t want it removed otherwise, but it proved...distracting, for my colleagues.”

 

Hugh raised an eye brow. “Did they give you a hard time?”

  
“Well, they wanted to know if we were back together. And then when I said no, that this was an accident, they assumed it meant I got it from someone else. And now they think I’m here, flaunting my new lover’s creation and rubbing it in my ex’ face”, Paul explained.

 

“Okay, well, I’ll try to look extra grumpy when I eat with Saru at the mess hall tonight”, Hugh told him and fixed the red spot.

 

“It’s nice that you two are friends”, Paul noted, wincing slightly from Hugh’s care.

 

“Yeah, he is an easy person to talk to. He doesn’t assume, he asks”, Hugh agreed. “Now, you should be all better now”, he continued, testing out the skin he had just healed by running a thumb over it.

 

“Thanks, dear”, Paul said and hopped off the bed. “I’ll see you tonight after dinner? At your place?”

 

Hugh agreed and watched him leave. He wondered if it was time for them to step back out into the light, considering it was starting to be difficult to sneak into each other’s quarters every night undetected. Before the Discovery would reach sentient life, there was little for the crew to do except gossip.

 

At the dinner with Saru, Hugh and he exchanged a few pleasantries before Saru grew solemn and quiet. Hugh asked him what was amiss, and the Kelpien sighed.

 

“I’m afraid I have some bad news to give to you, Hugh”, he said.

 

Hugh braced himself. “What kind?”

 

“Last time, you asked me about commander Stamets and his relationship status. I’m afraid I’ve been informed by several sources that he has indeed moved on.”

 

Hugh tried to keep his face still. “Really? How do you know?”

 

“Several crew members saw him sporting a hickey earlier today, and there have been rumours for quite some time now that he doesn’t spend his nights at his new quarters. Or if he does, not alone”, Saru told him gently.

 

Hugh shook his head. He couldn’t lie to Saru, especially not when he was being so caring for him, and he had told as much to Paul, who had agreed that the acting Captain would be someone they could tell their secret to. He leaned forward and whispered: “Saru, it’s me. I am who Paul is spending time with.”

 

Saru cheered up instantly. “Really?”

 

“Yes. We just didn’t tell anyone until, well when we’re ready for the truth to come out. Although today was a close call, and that day is probably coming soon”, Hugh explained.

 

“Well, let me be the first to congratulate you on your improved relationship”, Saru said cordially and Hugh accepted with a smile. “Thanks. I really think we are closer than ever.”

 

“So all that about him moving to smaller quarters…?”

 

“So that we both have a place to call our own. We spend time together, but also apart.”

 

“Sounds very...human”, Saru noted. “I do understand the need for space.” He seemed to remember something. “Oh, I also heard, that Tilly, Michael and Jett were going to follow Commander Stamets and find out once and for all who his mystery man is.”

 

“Good to know”, Hugh said, making a mental note to warn Paul later.

 

“Tonight”, Saru added.

 

Hugh nodded and excused himself, so he could go warn Paul right then and there. Saru stood up as well. “Maybe I should join you. I might be able to distract Tilly and the others’ attention until you can warn him.”

 

Hugh nodded. They returned their trays and headed towards Hugh’s quarters, where he knew Paul would be headed to.

 

*

 

Paul had met Tilly, Michael, Jett and the others for dinner. He had seen Hugh and Saru arrive, but Hugh was facing the other way, so Paul was pretty sure his partner hadn’t noticed him there. Paul made conversation with his friends and ate slower than usual. Then he noticed Hugh and Saru get up to leave the mess hall, and he decided to pick up the pace. He finished his meal, and said goodnight to Tilly and the others. Then he returned his tray and started walking towards Hugh’s quarters. As he walked, he had a strange sensation of being watched, but when he stopped to look around him, he didn’t see anyone in the hallway. He figured he must have imagined it.

 

When he arrived to the part of the hall where Hugh’s quarters were situated at, he saw that both Hugh and Saru were standing outside them. He greeted them both and shot a questioning glance at Hugh, who whispered: “Saru just informed me that your colleagues are following you to track down your mystery man once and for all.”

 

Paul shook his head. “Maybe it’s time they knew. At least then they would leave us alone.”

 

Hugh nodded. He reached out to take Paul’s hand just as Michael, Tilly and Jett arrived around the corner. At the sight of them, Hugh almost pulled back his hand on instinct, having grown so used to hiding their relationship, but Paul held it in place.

 

“Well, you caught us”, he told his colleagues as the realization started to dawn on them.

 

“So you _are_ back together?” Tilly asked, excitedly. Her question was directed at Hugh, who quickly glanced at Paul before confirming: “We are.”

 

“So you’re the one gave mushroom boy his hickey. Nice job, doc Poo”, Jett told them jokingly.

 

Paul turned to look at Hugh, who was a little embarrassed. “It was...not my intention.”

 

“We are all very glad for you”, Michael told them, her eyes shining with joy and sadness, the latter of which Paul assumed was related to her recent heartbreak.

 

“Yes, well, we didn’t want to say anything before we figured things out properly”, Paul told her and shook her hand briefly before grabbing Hugh’s hand again.

 

“Well, might I suggest we leave these two alone for now? More importantly, where are my credits?” Saru told the others, who started handing him money.

 

Paul looked at him, mouth wide open in shock, and Saru explained: “Hugh might have fed me some inside information that led me to thrive in a bet that was about you two.”

  
Paul turned to look at Hugh, who raised his hands to defend himself. “I didn’t know there was a bet going on, I would’ve told you.”

 

Paul couldn’t help but smile at Hugh, and after patting Saru in the back, they found their way into Hugh’s quarters.

 

Once there, he wrapped his arms around Hugh and kissed him rather ardently. Hugh kissed him back, pleased.

 

“Well the truth is out. Are you sure you’re okay with that?” Hugh asked him. His smile caused Paul to grab his left butt cheek and pull him up to him.

 

“I am. But I’m up for some slight persuasion either way”, Paul said and started undoing Hugh’s medical uniform.

 

_Fin_


End file.
